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Post by Ravenchamp on Dec 20, 2016 8:29:02 GMT -5
The battle for the AFC North Title
Baltimore Ravens
8-6, 2nd in AFC North
Sunday, December 25, 4:30 PM on NFLN
Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Baltimore
Ravens
@
Pittsburgh
Steelers
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Post by Evil Yoda on Dec 20, 2016 16:59:51 GMT -5
They pretty much have to win out. I suspect if they do, Harbaugh's job is safe. Unfortunately. But if they don't all bets are off. They need an offense minded head coach.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2016 0:56:48 GMT -5
Win or lose, I doubt if Harbaugh goes anywhere after this season. In his defense, he's had only one losing season during his nine-year tenure in Baltimore. I would expect, however, to see the Ravens continue the never-ending parade of offensive coordinators this offseason.
If nothing else, Sunday's game marks the 45th anniversary of the NFL's longest game, the 1971 AFC playoff between the Chiefs and the Dolphins, which lasted 82 minutes and 40 seconds.
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Post by Ravenchamp on Dec 21, 2016 7:47:27 GMT -5
One thing for sure, this game as history shows will be an epic battle
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Post by Evil Yoda on Dec 21, 2016 12:20:02 GMT -5
Win or lose, I doubt if Harbaugh goes anywhere after this season. In his defense, he's had only one losing season during his nine-year tenure in Baltimore. I would expect, however, to see the Ravens continue the never-ending parade of offensive coordinators this offseason. And that's the problem as I see it: Harbaugh is as bad at picking OCs as Ozzie is bad at picking wideouts - really bad. The one talented guy he had (Kubiak) jumped ship after one year for a better opportunity (head coach billet working with a friend). If nothing else, Sunday's game marks the 45th anniversary of the NFL's longest game, the 1971 AFC playoff between the Chiefs and the Dolphins, which lasted 82 minutes and 40 seconds. Did you maybe drop a digit somewhere? This is just under 1.5 hours - almost every game lasts around three. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2016 16:05:12 GMT -5
Win or lose, I doubt if Harbaugh goes anywhere after this season. In his defense, he's had only one losing season during his nine-year tenure in Baltimore. I would expect, however, to see the Ravens continue the never-ending parade of offensive coordinators this offseason. And that's the problem as I see it: Harbaugh is as bad at picking OCs as Ozzie is bad at picking wideouts - really bad. The one talented guy he had (Kubiak) jumped ship after one year for a better opportunity (head coach billet working with a friend). If nothing else, Sunday's game marks the 45th anniversary of the NFL's longest game, the 1971 AFC playoff between the Chiefs and the Dolphins, which lasted 82 minutes and 40 seconds. Did you maybe drop a digit somewhere? This is just under 1.5 hours - almost every game lasts around three. That's official playing time. The game went to a sixth quarter and finally ended on a field goal by the Dolphins' Garo Yepremian. |
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Post by Ravenchamp on Dec 26, 2016 7:34:13 GMT -5
Hard fought game but we blew it.
Waiting for major firings to begin
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Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2016 11:08:00 GMT -5
I think we'll see some changes, but I doubt if Harbaugh is going anywhere. What the Ravens truly need is to get younger and faster, particularly on defense.
A major defensive collapse yesterday, to be sure. In the fourth quarter alone, the Ravens surrendered over 200 yards and three touchdowns. When they scored their final TD to put them up 27-24, my first thought was that they had left too much time on the clock. The Steelers' offense was rolling at that point, and the Ravens' defense seemed powerless to stop it.
I don't understand why the Ravens didn't attempt a Hail Mary on the final play and instead went with that dump-off over the middle that was intercepted. Roll Flacco out and have him heave it as high and as far as he can; he certainly has the arm to do so. The percentages aren't very good on a play like that, but there's always the possibility of at least picking up a pass interference call.
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Post by Evil Yoda on Dec 26, 2016 11:48:36 GMT -5
The defense took the fourth quarter off. Harbaugh has difficulty getting four quarters from both units in every game.
I'd like to see Harbaugh go, chiefly because I feel they really need coordinators and I don't trust Harbaugh to choose those men wisely. I think, especially if they can beat the Bengals next week, that they have probably turned it around enough to save his job. It will depend on whether Bis considers a .500 record enough of an improvement over last year that he does not feel the need to write another letter of apology to the fans. Once, they'll be grateful for the gesture. Twice in a row, they'll start to dismiss it as a cheap marketing ploy.
This is Flacco's second lackluster season in a row. Granted, about 1.5 of those seasons were spent seriously injured or recovering from that, so the hope exists for him to be better next year. But I think he needs better offensive minds. And they have got to run, run, run, run, because he simply isn't very accurate, and he makes bad choices about who to hit (double teamed Perriman means someone, somewhere, is wide open. Joe didn't see that.) That means they have to devise line schemes that support the run and good run plays, neither of which they had this year. They kept reverting to the pass.
He's a low second tier quarterback despite what they're paying him, and their game planning needs to reflect that reality.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2016 13:37:49 GMT -5
Harbaugh is under contract through next year only, and while I don't think he's going anywhere at the present moment, the Ravens can't let him go into next season as a lame duck. It's difficult to coach under such conditions because there's a much greater chance of losing the locker room should things begin to go sour. Regardless of how people feel about him, Harbaugh doesn't deserve that.
I think he'll be given a one-year extension at some point this offseason, which is more or less another way of saying that he's on notice.
I'm sure there will be coaching changes, perhaps both at offensive and defensive coordinator, but I'm not sure how much its actually going to help. The Ravens are a shade above average talent-wise right now, and the record tends to bear that out. They're capable of beating mediocre teams, but struggle against the good ones. They lack playmakers on offense, and as I alluded to earlier, they need to get younger and faster on defense, particularly up front and in the secondary. They had no pass rush yesterday against the Steelers, and their secondary struggled in coverage.
I know they were without Jimmy Smith, but I'm not sure how much difference he would have made. He's a good player, but he isn't the second coming of Night Train Lane. He also has difficulty staying healthy, which should make cornerback an offseason priority. They're committed to Smith for the present, but after next season his cap number balloons to $12 million, which is too much of a hit if he can't stay healthy.
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Post by Ravenchamp on Dec 26, 2016 21:04:57 GMT -5
Social Media chat has Rob Ryan coming in for Defensive Coord.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2016 23:59:12 GMT -5
Social Media chat has Rob Ryan coming in for Defensive Coord. I hope you're not referring to Rex's brother. His defenses have been a train wreck virtually every place he's been. The only reason he's still in the NFL is due to his name. |
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Post by Evil Yoda on Dec 27, 2016 10:45:02 GMT -5
Good good, no. Where they need a solid coordinator is on offense. I believe that should be the first task, so that man has time to meet his talent and design a better playbook than we saw this year. If they do replace Pees, they better not hire Rob Ryan. He's the least talented of the three Ryans. Rex might well be available, but I doubt he'll come here. He's said he doesn't want to step back to DC, he probably doesn't want to work for the owner who passed him over for head coach, and if the rumors are true that Harbaugh is threatened by strong coordinators, Harbs won't want him here.
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